Combination ice and beverage dispensers typically have several beverage dispensing valves, one or more ice dispensing chutes carried on a front of the dispenser above a splash panel and a drip tray located beneath the splash panel. Such dispensers also include an ice retaining bin having a motor driven agitator for delivering ice on demand from the bin to and through the ice dispense chute(s) and to a cold plate located beneath the bin and used to chill beverage components delivered to the dispensing valves. The drip tray serves as a platform on which a receptacle, such as a cup, can be placed and supported as it is being filled with ice and beverage. The drip tray support surface usually comprises a wire grate to allow spilled beverage to flow through the grate to a lower drain. The drip tray also collects condensate, extra ice from the ice chute(s), and any material that drips from the valves. The drip tray has a drain tube that extends from the bottom of the drip tray to an external drain.
The beverage dispensing valves and ice dispensing chute(s) typically are mounted on a front of the beverage dispenser beneath a merchandising cover and above and at least partially over an upper end of a splash panel that is located beneath the merchandising cover and extends between downward to the drip tray. To service the agitator motor or access beverage tubing or other internal components within a housing of the dispenser, it is necessary to remove the splash panel and drip tray to provide access to the interior of the housing. Conventional beverage dispenser designs usually require the splash panel to be removed first, while the drip tray remains fixed in position, since the locking mechanism attaching the drip tray to the dispenser is located behind the splash panel, and the splash panel must be removed to accommodate access to and manipulation of the locking mechanism to release the drip tray from the dispenser. When the dispensing valves are of a type having operator actuable dispensing arms or levers that extend downward from the valves and over an upper portion of the splash panel, it can be difficult to remove and replace the splash panel without striking the arms and damaging the valves. Also, during disassembly and reassembly, the drip tray locking mechanism can be difficult to manually access and manipulate due to a lack of space in the front of the beverage dispenser housing.